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Dark Avengers#7:
Review

Sep 2009

Matt Fraction,
Luke Ross

Story Name:

Utopia part 3

Review & Comments

Rating:

Dark Avengers #7 Review by Rob Johnson (October 31, 2017)

This is part 3 of the Dark Avengers/Uncanny X-Men: Utopia crossover. Matt Fraction is writing the whole thing so he takes over here from Brian Michael Bendis. There's a new penciller/inker for this issue and next too in Luke Ross. (But he gets inking assists from Rick MKagyar and Mark Pennington.) Mike Deodato still does the covers.

Fraction is the regular writer of UXM, so that correctly suggests that this 'event' is more of an X-thing than an A-thing. And for these 2 issues the DAv are reduced to guest stars in their own mag.

The cover focuses on the DAv/DXM fight which doesn't actually happen this issue, or in fact in UXM#514 either. And Sentry and Prof X (Mystique) aren't involved. And more than that it includes Marvel Boy who left the DAv in #5.

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Synopsis / Summary / Plot

Beast has been brought back to his cell in the H.A.M.M.E.R. west coast base on Alcatraz Island after being subjected to the Omega Machine.Professor X contacts him telepathically from the next cell and learns that Hank McCoy's fur is falling off and his fingernails are falling out.

A strangely solicitous Iron Patriot (Norman Osborn) complains to Dark Beast that the machine was only supposed to sap mutants' powers and not otherwise harm them. We then get the usual scene of 2 villainous 'allies' threatening each other.

Norman goes away and bitches about it to Sentry. Bob Reynolds is depressed as usual and Osborn tries to cheer him up by claiming that he and Emma Frost know what they're doing.

Black Queen herself is leading NO's Dark X-Men against a bunch of mutants protesting Osborn's curfew in San Francisco's Union Square. Emma tackles their leader Hellion. And it's Dagger vs Adam-X, Daken vs Avalanche, Mimic vs Match, Sub-Mariner vs Sunspot and Weapon Omega vs Meld as Cloak's cloak swallows Lorelei. EF has to stop Daken from using his claws on Avalanche, who is almost grateful to disappear into Cloak's darkness.

Hellion blasts Black Queen and Daken. Namor headbutts Sunspot. Dagger kicks Adam-X in the face breaking his nose. Cloak takes him, and has probably also already teleported Match, Meld and Sunspot because Hellion suddenly finds himself alone facing the whole team. This kind of televised confrontation was what he wanted. He believes it will show mutants under the jackboot of oppressors, but Ms Frost says they are a mutant hero team arresting a mob trashing the park.

UXM#513 ended with Cyclops deciding it was time to talk with Norman Osborn. So now we see him land on Alcatraz via jetpack, and ask the HAMMER troops to take him to their leader. Victoria Hand won't let him into the base but she asks her boss to come out to meet him. Osborn tries to play nice but seems to be leading up to asking Scott to resign as mutant leader, presumably in favour of *his* candidate Emma Frost.

But Cyclops cuts him off and asks Osborn to leave town. The rioting is now under control. Scott will allow Osborn to keep his curfew for 1 more night while he gets things tidied up. He suggests Norman say that they've discussed things and agreed that the city and the mutants can look after themselves now, so it's time to go.

Norman is gobsmacked. But he responds that Cyclops has proven himself a failure as mutant leader. And now that Scott's turned down his offer to make things easy, the kid gloves are off. Cyke jets away, telling Osborn to remember that he *tried* to end things peacefully.

Hawkeye (Bullseye) of the Dark Avengers isn't happy as he sees the DXM stealing their thunder - and their teammate Daken now running with their rivals. Ms Marvel (Moonstone) is calmer, saying it's safer for mutants to police mutants. Bullseye turns to Spider-Man (Venom (Mac Gargan)) for support. Gargan agrees with him but accepts Osborn's orders. Ares just agrees that as warriors they should be out there. Sentry sticks his head in to say the other team is back.

Osborn and Dark Beast welcome the DXM back home with Hellion in tow. It turns out this is where Cloak sent the other 6 to, and they are on their knees handcuffed with metal masks covering their heads. Daken kicks Hellion in the stomach to make him assume the same position. Black Queen berates him again and Daken answers back.

NO tries to break it up as the DAv arrive (minus Sentry). Frost turns on Osborn and demands that mutants be accorded their civil rights. He replies that the helmets are merely power-dampeners designed by Beast. But Emma adds that she *knows* this isn't the real Beast but his Dark double from another timeline. She demands to see what they're doing with their mutant prisoners, and Norman offers her the grand tour including DB's Omega Machine. (She was about to be given that tour in UXM#513 but it was interrupted when the DXM had to be scrambled.)

As EF leaves with NO and DB she tells her team to behave while she's gone. But Bullseye wants to know whether Daken is an Avenger or an X-Man. Daken wants to know why it's his business. And soon the teams are about to clash.

Osborn encourages Emma to look through the viewports into any of the cells. She sees Erg looking dejected, but Norman explains that the process initially gives them something like a mild flu, but there are no long term effects and Henry McCoy is working on eliminating even the initial symptoms. The process merely limits a mutant's ability to use his power.

But Prof X in his cell detects Emma's presence. But he knows that she's currently in her diamond-flesh battle form - so she can hear him but can't think back. However she manages to keep having a conversation with Osborn while actually replying to Charles Xavier out loud.

Charles tells her that Osborn is lying as she expected. They're killing the real Beast. Emma asks Norman what the process does to mutants with permanent physical manifestations, and she asks to see Beast. But Osborn claims he's not here - the police must have him. Prof X tells her McCoy is next door to him. Emma points to those 2 cells and asks who's in them. Dark Beast says they're just storage lockers. Emma looks in 1 and sees a jumble of equipment. Xavier says he sees her looking right at him. DB whispers to NO that the image inducer in the window seems to be working.

Finally at St Francis Hospital Simon Trask, now captioned as Human Sentinel Zero, speaks to the people he has infected and now controls. And he sends them out to kill mutants.